Johan is passionate about protecting the environment. He puts sustainability at the forefront of all his business and leadership efforts, including his presidency of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS).
In 2005 he founded the Rainforest Trust which preserves a 1,600 km2 rainforest area in the Amazon region, and he is the co-founder and President of Cool Earth, which sponsors local NGOs to conserve endangered rainforest
He is a director of the Foundation for Renewable Energy and Environment, and a member of the advisory board of The Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative,
He previously served as a member of the International Advisory Board of the Stockholm Resilience Centre, Sweden (2010-2022) and as a trustee of the Kew Foundation, Royal Botanical Society (2010-2016).
In 2007, the UK Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, invited Johan to investigate the role of deforestation in climate change, and the Eliasch Review made its recommendations the following year. The Review informed the Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation framework as part of the international climate change convention.
Johan served as a member of HM government as the Prime Minister's Special Representative on Deforestation and Clean Energy (2007-2010).
Johan chaired the 2021-22 HM Treasury net zero review technology and innovation advisory group and served on the UK’s Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) Council for Sustainable Business.
He chaired the Food, Energy and Water Security Program at the Royal United Services Institute (2010-2016).
The world was not designed for 8 billion people living the way we do. Food, water, weather, climate and energy security are real and present threats to all of humanity.